One-Eyed Doll & Vanilla Sugar at Scout Bar, 9/10/2014

A solid but small crowd that gathered at Scout Bar Wednesday night to view the greatest Texas goth-punk band in the world, Austin's One-Eyed Doll. Earlier, around 8 p.m., a line of about 20 or 30 people had waited to meet front woman Kimberly Freeman, who Revolver named one of its "Hottest Chicks in Hard Rock" at the merch table.

The tall, slender brunette wore a trucker hat atop her Crystal Gale-like mane that flowed past her mid-thigh. She hugged each fan and chatted them up as she signed memorabilia and took photographs, before disappearing for a bit and returning to catch opening band Vanilla Sugar right up front.

There is no question as to why One-Eyed Doll has such a faithful following. Freeman and her bandmate, Junior, delivered a wholly entertaining show while playing up their Texas roots in a theatrical performance that can best be described as a satanic Romper Room. She led the crowd in many singalongs, such as "serial killers are people too, if you take away the voices, I'm just like you," from their popular song, "Be My Friend."

Still, her interaction made the show. Freeman made an announcement that a special guest was in the house and invited Klaus Meine, lead singer of the Scorpions, onto the stage. Actually it was a fan who was told to come up a few moments earlier, and after a few riffs of "Rock You Like a Hurricane," the guy stepped to the mike and said, "Here I am."

The crowd erupted in laughter and cheers. Freeman then instructed him to get on all fours, belted out "Scorpion Death" and eventually mounted him. It was similar, but not nearly as awkward as the Tool fan-riding incident.

The evening's most memorable moment happened when five children were recruited to join Freeman onstage and became dance instructors. After digging through her costume chest, Freeman gave each kid a piece of headgear. All of them came up with their own dance moves, and the crowd followed along while the band rocked out to another song.

I don't know what to think about parents taking their school-age children to a concert at a bar on a school night. On the other hand, those kids are going to have an unbelievable story to tell their friends today. Don't worry, kiddos -- there are pictures to prove it.

Story continues on the next page.

Vanilla Sugar

So, How About the Opener? After reading about Jessica Perry in the Rocks Off 200, Houston's Vanilla Sugar piqued my interest. I was uncertain what to expect, but the all-girl band absolutely killed it. These ladies are legitimate musicians who exude a sexy confidence, performing like a cohesive group that had been together for several years.

Cortnii Veronica Rose's ferocious vocals centered the group, and Vanessa Vallejo shredded her guitar from the word go. The way drummer KB let loose during "Feel Better Now" was a personal highlight, but the crowd's favorite came during a cover of AWOLNATION's "Sail," which they interspersed with Die Antwoord's "Enter the Ninja."

After finishing up with new song "Sabotage," Vanilla Sugar received a great reaction. I'm all in after seeing them perform live, and wouldn't be surprised to see them making an even larger impact on the local scene before long. Is it too soon to nominate them for the 2015 Houston Press Music Awards?

Seen In the Crowd: One of the baddest-looking dudes that I've seen in a long time walked by and took a huge swig of his Bud Light...with his pinky up. It was commercial worthy. I'm not afraid of him anymore.

Random Notebook Dump: This is my first show to take in at Scout Bar. The setup was a bit awkward, but the sound and lighting were great. The staff was friendly, drinks were cold and the bathrooms were clean. I plan to visit again very soon.